PARENTING SCHOOL OVERWHELM

I won’t lie to you….today was a tough one..

Oddly it wasn’t sending my youngest (3) off to school. That part went surprisingly well..

She barely looked over her shoulder as she marched into her new classroom. (A stark contrast to the 2 weeks I spent in-class with my (now) 5 year old)

*smiling at the memory*

It was the additional headspace required to successfully execute this mission… At some point during the very long school holidays, I had forgotten what it took.

It went something like;

“Must pack rest sheets to take in to school”
“While I’m there I mustn’t forget to go to reception to finish that paperwork they wanted back months ago”
“Lunch, ok sweet, don’t need till next week”
“Bags” (what on earth was meant to be in them again!!) …where did I last see her school hat…
“Bugger, forgot to buy fruit”
“Swim lessons, mustn’t forget to pack gear”
“Do I pack a lunch and go out after school” “Or will they prefer to be home”
“If at home, must go buy food or no one will be eating anything”
“Maybe I should rather use the time to quickly clean the house so we can actually enjoy eating said lunch”
“Yes, will brave the shops with two children post first-day-back so that we have clean house as well as something to eat for lunch and dinner”
“Arggg forgot shopping list in mad flurry” (kids fighting, got distracted).
“Best sprint home quickly to get it”
(dash out of school forgetting to go in to reception…AGAIN)
…and on it went…

That was all before 9am.

That part isn’t too bad…it’s a pretty common experience when you’ve got kids.

But I had an even LONGER checklist for all that I’d set to accomplish in my work day!!

Now, normally I am someone who thrives under pressure, deadlines and over-committing, but not today.

My brain started siezing and announced candidly and with horrible timing “Sod this, I’m out of here”.

My emotions stepped in and said “No problem we’ll take it from here”.

And if anyone else can relate, when your brain gets fried and your emotions take over…it aint pretty…

It’s amazing how quickly piling expectations can overwhelm us so quickly and so easily. Fortunately I am not new to overdoing things and so I figured there wasn’t much left to do but to kick back, ride the wave, hug my kids and sit with a dumb look on my face all afternoon.

In hindsight I could have expected a bit of an adjustment, not put so much on to myself in one day. But as I sit here I’m glad I didn’t try to fight it all too much. Saw it for what it was, let it out so I could let go.

I guess this makes me human 🙂

I reflect on the many families out there, dealing with all sorts of adjustments and want to send out love and appreciation to every single one of you.

Love,

Hannah – Meditating Mama
Holistic Health Counsellor